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So finally I've got round to posting this, I got the Academy 48 Phantom in Hannants when it was a rather exciting new kit and have held onto it since then. When this came out it was a challenger to the Hasegawa monopoly on this aircraft in the scale and apart from the dodgy multi-coloured plastic it looks like a rather good kit (in particular the munitions included) so I've elected to turn down the aftermarket offerings already springing up and build it OOB. It will only be my second 1/48 build, so I'm looking forward to it! -Flash

As a side topic to the 'what should Airfix be making' and the inevitable 'why?' and 'why not' posts that follow can you list your personal wishlists in 3 categories: Near term - those you feel are likely to come to fruition in a year or two, even if you won't be buying it Medium term - within say 5 years, and can include those models You want to see that are a faintly realistic proposition. Long term - when you will be planning a release from your cryogenic chamber. (note: whilst the long term plans may include unlikely makes or marks, or even a corrected version of a current bestseller please try keep them fairly realistic - I doubt Airfix will be making a Tibetan homemade glider at any point despite the clamouring for one) .... Ok I'll start off (and I'll try to keep it as new kits only not rereleases) Near: Single seat Vamps P-47 (razor and bubble) D3A Val (extending the pacific WW2 niche) Buccaneer (a big UK seller and the old one is aged) Meteors (including at least 1 each T & NF) 2 seat Lightning (so many fighters, needs a matching trainer) Medium: Whirlwind (the forgotten WW2 fighter) DH106 Comet (4s please, RAF & Dan Air schemes) Victor (much demanded to replace the aging Matchbox) F-4 Phantoms (a European sized hole will persist unless FujiGawa get cheaper, or Revell add to their F) Panther/Cougar - (expanding the USN theme in to post war) Long: Vulcan (old mould is creaking) Wellesley (Forgotten type, fits with a WW2 desert theme) Gazelle (hard to find, simply needs updating to modern standards) Wasp/Scout (a missing link so long oop) Viggan (actually pretry much any Saab as the reborn Heller seen reluctant to mass market, and non-Gripens aren't commonplace) *I reserve the right to change my mind if I think of new options (and given time I could extend to top 100s!)

Announced (sort of) on their FB page. https://www.facebook.com/Hong-Kong-Models-Co-Ltd-1375731456009809/timeline/ Cheers, Andrew

Having recently built an Academy F-4EJ (same kit) I know the failings of this kit before I begin, this should make it easier to plan ahead and correct things before assembly. One of the major things I need to do it rescribe the entire kit as it has a mixture of raised and very lightly engraved lines. I havent decided which decals to use yet. I have the supplied Revell decals but I also have the spare decals from the Academy kit.

I managed to find this little gem on eBay recently... One of my favourite aircraft of all time and a legendary combat plane, i have very fond memories of watching these at Mildenhall and Weathersfield as a kid so im really looking forward to this build. The plane in question is 68-0493 which had a confirmed Mig-21 kill in July 1972. Its a good looking kit with plenty of detail, very little flash and a really nice decal sheet so it should go together quite well. Im going to try some different paint on this build, im usually a Tamiya kinda guy but ive heard good things about Hataka paints and the colours are apparently a really good match so looking forward to giving these a try.

Next Project! This one is for my old man, he worked on this very jet during his service and is one of two as I'll be doing another Phantom for him in 228 OCU colours. Throwing the boat out for it, I want this damn near perfect. Aftermarket is going to include... Aries Cockpit and Ejector Seats Master Model Pitots Hypersonic Canopy Set True Details Wheels (Which need some work, the sidewall tyre bulges are silly, looks like they're flat!) CAM Decals - The kit decals are all multipart and yellowed so I'm replacing them. Eduard PE Kit PE & White metal. Flightpath PE Ladder Normally, I like my models all buttoned up and sealed but Dad wants all the options open so that's the plan! The actual airframe was spotless so that's the way the model is going to be. I'll have a little bit of freedom on the metal surfaces as they wouldn't be so easy to clean. Photos to Follow.

Afternoon folks - I am wanting to do a 1:72 Phantom for 23 Sqd in the green/grey camo and wondered which companies did decals for this squadron? thanks chris

F-4J VF-96 Showtime 100 1:72 Academy Does the F-4 Phantom really need an introduction? Probably one of the most recognisable aircraft ever which severed with many NATO and Allied Nations Air Forces. The aircraft was originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft as a long range, supersonic interceptor/fighter bomber for the US Navy. Its use would then expand to the US Marine Corps, the US Air Force and many other nations. The F-4J model was an improvement of the original F-4B for the US Navy and Marine Corps, the emphasis to was improve air-to-air capability. new engines would give additional thrust, a AN/APG-59 pulse Doppler radar couples with an AN/AWG-10 fire control system would give a look-down shoot-down capability. Larger main wheel would be fitted giving rise to the larger wheel housing bulges similar to the USAF F-4C. New slatted tailplanes would be fitted, along with ailerons dropping to 16.5° which would bring down the aircrafts landing speed. Zero Zero ejection seats would be fitted to enhance crew survivability. There would be no IRST sensor under the nose of the F-4J. Show Time 100 is probably the most famous F-4 Phantom in the US Navy. Lt Randy Cunningham and Lt(JG) Willie Driscoll were to shoot down 3 MiG's on the 10th May 1972 while taking part in the Linebacker campaign. This would make Lt Cunningham the top scoring US Navy pilot and ace in Vietnam taking his tally to 5 victories. Lt Driscoll as the Radar Intercept Officer would also become an Ace in line with US practice in crediting both crew members with victories. Showtime 100 or F-4J 155800 would not be so lucky, as on the return from the famous engagement she was to be hit by a Surface to Air Missile. Both crew would eject to safety. Both crew members would receive the Navy Cross. It is sad to reflect that Randy Cunningham will be remembered more for his subsequent corruption conviction than his Navy record. The Kit There was quite a lot of talk when Academy announced the release of a new tool F-4J in 1.72 scale, this turned a bit to scepticism when it became apparent this would be snap together kit, however this has proved to be a bit misleading. The kit is designed in multi coloured plastic with the ability to put it together without any glue, or paint; and to this extent a set of stickers is provided in addition to the normal waterslide transfers. However this has not resulted in a toy like model. The kit features full length intake trunking with engine fan fronts and one part exhausts. The detail level appears to be outstanding and modeller who have the kit say that the fit is good. The one downside that is visible straight away is that the weapons supplied seem to be a little undersize. In a flashback to the Matchbox days the kit arrives on multi-coloured sprues. You get three sprues of white plastic, two of grey plastic, and two of black plastic. In addition you get a one part main fuselage (no pesky centre seam to deal with), and a one part (closed) canopy. All the parts look to be well moulded with no flash. Construction starts with shockingly enough with the cockpit. The control column and rudder pedals are made up fro the front seater, these are then added to the cockpit tub along with the front and rear bulkheads and rear side consoles. Next the front instrument coaming, and the rear engine bulk head are added to the one part upper fuselage. Following this the completed cockpit tub, two internal bulkheads and the one part engines are added to the lower fuselage/wing part. Once these are in the upper fuselage can be attached as well as the rear fuselage part above the engines. Once the lower wing & main fuselage parts are together its time to work on the underside of this main assembly. The aux intake doors are added along with the arrestor hook. Construction then again shifts to the top side. The three part ejection seats (no firing handles supplied) are made up and added to the cockpits. The full length intakes are then constructed. These are four part. A front and back, the engine face and the splitter plate. It would like the splitter plate can be added later for painting purposes, but the modeller would need to double check this. Once made up the intakes are attached to the main fuselage along with the radome. Next up the upper wings are added, along with the tail plane and the fin cap. Construction then moves back to the underside of the aircraft. The main landing gear legs are made up (leg, wheel, strut and door). The tyres on these are split n the traditional way. The main gear, the gear doors, and underwing airbrakes are then added. Next up is the nose gear. This consists of the main leg, scissors, retraction strut, and small door. This sub assembly is added along with the main nose gear door, and then the cooling inlets on the nose. It should be noted that all gear doors can be fitted in the closed position and the landing gear left off if the modeller wishes to do so. The last construction step is to add the underwing stores. Fuel tanks are supplied for the wings, and the main under fuselage one. Sparrows are supplied for the fuselage wells, and for the inner pylons Sidewinders and what look to be 5000lb bombs are supplied along with their TER's. It is slightly disappointing to see the weapons look undersize. Lastly the canopy is added, this is one part and can only be used in the closed position. Decals & Stickers Once again for an F-4J we get markings for Showtime 100, as it is probably the most phamous F-4J it is understandable but still frustrating. As well as these marking you get markings for another F-4J from VF-96 on the USS Constellation at that time, nose number 107 (again flown by Lt Cunningham this time with Lt Smith in the Back seat. Unlike other Academy kits these decals seem to be in house and not by Cartograf. They seem to be well printed with minimal carrier film, no registration issues and seem to be colour dense. There is not much to say about the stickers, they look well printed, how long they will stay on for I dont know. Conclusion The kit has main items in its favour such as the one part upper fuselage, full length intake trunking and one part exhausts. The kit should make up into a good looking model, it still looks toy like in some ways to the reviewer (more so if you look at the weapons). The kit should be useful in helping to bring younger modellers into the fold as it can be assembled without paint, glue or waterslide decals and will look pretty good if done like this. Adult supervision will still be needed as there are parts to be removed from the sprues and trimmed. The kit should also appeal to adult modellers who will make a good job of the kit. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for

I have started the Testor Phantom to represent one I photographed from my office window circa early 1990s. I am unable to read the full serial number so the kit decals will have to do. Lou

Completed for the Phantom STGB right here on Britmodeller. Revell F-4F kit with Eduard exterior set, loads of scratchbuilt modifications, painted scheme and homemade decals. Photos courtesy of Farnborough IPMS website, taken by our very own Kallisti. (Thanks Andrew!) Lots more pics and build thread HERE Cheers, Al

Hey everyone and here's the latest from me, finished for the Phantom GB here on Britmodeller. Yes, it's Airfix's ancient (1971 issue) F-4B Phantom that I think I bought out of sheer nostalgia and also after reading the excellent Osprey book pictured below (which has the kit's wingman on the cover). The full WIP thread is here but to recap: Kit: Airfix 04013 F-4B Phantom 1/72 Details: Some panel lines rescribed, Eduard Zoom photoetch for the kits seats and cockpit (which was scratchbuilt) Paint: White from a rattle can, all other paints Revell Acrylic, brush-painted. Johnson' Klear, Flory Models Wash, W&N Matt varnish Decals: Mix of Airfx kit for the Stars & Bars and Afterburner decals for squadron markings, A/c: VF-21 'Freelancers' of Lt Dave Batson & LCDR Rob Doremus, Callsign 'Sundown 102', USS Midway, 17 June 1965 - Mig 17 shotdown. Definitely not the most detailed or accurate F-4 kit out there by a long way but it was the first time I used etch, first time I built an F-4 and I had a lot of fun with the build. She might be a little too Matt in finish (hard to tell when most of the pictures were B&W) but I'm happy how the old girl cleaned up and I think she looks like a Phantom! Thanks for looking and until the next time! Dermot

Hasegawa's 1/48 F-4J built to represent an F-4J (UK) and is my final entry for the Phantom STGB. Decals are from Xtradecal for the Tiger Squadron markings and then Revell and Hasegawa for a few stencils. As Jens pointed out in the build thread, the main fuselage grey is too light but I'd already finished the decals by the time it was noticed. Build thread here: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234984777-mozzys-f-4j-uk/ I'm going to try get some better pictures cos these ones are pants! Sean

Another one from the Phantom STGB. I used Twobobs decals which were interesting to apply to say the least, some Aires exhausts and Hypersonic models unslotted stabilisers. Build thread here: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234984709-mozzys-orange-entry-returns/ Comments and criticism welcome. Sean Edit: just discovered I never put the torque link on the nose gear...

Seeing as the Black one is coming along very nicely, I thought I'd bite the bullet and make a start on this one. The only modifications will be to the exhausts as I'm going to use a set of Aires ones that I remembered I had knocking around. The build so far is pretty much the same drill as the other one although I did spend a little more time on the seat belts and joined the nose halves to the fuselage halves before I closed everything up. More tomorrow, Sean

Hi guys! This is my another project in 1/48 - Eduard (Academy) Good Morning Da Nang. I have started it some months ago and now decided to continue my build here. I'll be very glad to hear any comments of my work. P.S. I beg you pardon but my english is not very good now because I've got out of practice for a long time!

I recently bought this kit, and became aware that there is a concensus, that something is wrong with the nose. I went on the net and made some research. It seems the nose is too skinny and tapers too much to the front. There seems to be some options: Buy a resin replacement nose or make one yourself. As the resin replacement nose seem to be unavailable at the moment, I decided to try to make my own - I mean, how hard can it be? Once back on the net I found some pictures of the correct nose, put the image in 'Windows Paint' and resized it to the same diameter as Revell's nose and printed this. Cut the print out, glued it to some thin plasticcard, cut a 'X' in the Revell nose, and ended up with this: Using some 'Green Stuff' I filled out the blanks to get this: Which finished looked like this: (awfull, isn't it?) Using my trusty old motortool I sanded it back until the white pasticcard came through again - like this: After some more sanding and polishing I sprayed it with grey paint and this is what I got: I then sanded it back looking for imperfections which I duly filled with putty: And now it's finished-ish. I still need to sand back the paint to get a smooth finish (here you should play 'Smooth Operator' by Sade! ) And here it is: I don't know why this last picture is rotated, all the rest worked fine - but then again it may be a good thing, as we humans are not supposed to be perfect as not to upset the modelling gods! Hope my small venture into the world of correcting noses have been of some help (Glanzing through the gossipmagazines I'd say there are some Hollywood plasticsurgeons who could learn a thing or two about nosejobs! ) Cheers Hans J

Goood evening ppl! My brand new project is this Turkish ETM Phantom. While I waiting for get the correct color for my Sparviero I started something different. As can be seen on the photo, I going to use the HDL's decal sheet. I was thinking about buying a resin cockpit and ome whatever but I guess that'll do for a good and quick joybuild. I want to build this one: My plan is to load it to the maximum. What is for sure is the two underwing droptanks and four AIM-9 on the underwing pylons and I am thinking about to put on the centerline frop tank and two or four Sparrows. Three drop tanks and eight AAMs imposing, isn't? As I see they useing the same drop tanks, that the Revell includes. Anyway the quality of the moulds remembers me to the old Heller and Kovozávody Prostějov kits... And so on. Flush everywhere. I dont know what happened to the Revell. Anyway fits well thanks God.

I have a couple of 1:144 aircraft that I would like to paint in Vietnam colours. I would like to know what the colours are for camouflaged F-4E Phantom and a C-47 Skytrain, are they the same colours? I normally use and like Vallejo Air but I need help with identifying the bottle numbers to get for the Vietnam cam of tans and greens. I am also interested to hear If there is a better acrylic paint, which can be easily obtained in UK and, if so, who supplies them. And finally, any recommendations on who retails acrylic paints, such as Vallejo etc. at the most economic prices? Thanks for any assistance with this Mike

The phinal of my three 1/48th McDonnell-Douglas Phantom builds, this is the ubiquitous Revell F-4C/D kit built as F-4C serial 64-0776 operated by the 142nd FIG out of Portland, OR by the Oregon Air National Guard in June 1989. she was named 'Miss Piggy' and was a triple Mig killer. This is the fifth 'Revellogram' 1/48th F-4 that I have built and I still love this kit. On the downside it has raised panel lines and a couple of small issues but in general the kit goes together really well and the end result has that essential 'Phantomness' that I have loved since I saw my first Phantom air display at RNAS Yeovilton in 1970. This is my first Hill Gray painted Phantom. The paints are standard Humbrol enamels with Metal Cote applied to the jet exhaust areas. I have finally lost patience with my Harder & Steenbeck Ultra airbrush - it is almost totally bunged up and I can't unbung it - so I reverted to my ancient Badger 200 airbrush and it gave me really good results. The masking went well too and the result is a very clean looking Hill Gray Phantom The decals are from Speed Hunter Graphics 'USAF Phantom MiG Killers - Part 1'. Speed Hunter Graphics is a offshoot of Reid Air Publishing and is run by one Jake Melampy who is a superb aviation photographer and has published several books for military jet modellers in the USA. Hopefully the photos give an idea of the quality of these decals, they apply very easily and they are very detailed. The Oregon eagle on the tail fin below is a three part decal: Even the plain side looks good: 64-0776 is quite unique in that she is the only Phantom to have used each of its three weapons systems to destroy a Mig. I was keen to reflect this in the weapons loaded and I raided the new Academy F-4B kit which contains sprues with multiple versions of Sidewinders, Sparrows and a gun pod. This ANG F-4C carries 4 x AIM-4J Sidewinders, 4 x AIM-7F Sparrows and an SUU-23A 20mm gun pod. The decals and paints were sealed with a spray of Humbrol enamel matt varnish. I decided not to add weathering to this Phantom, the majority of ANG Phantoms of this time period were kept in very clean condition and from photos I have seen posted elsewhere 'Miss Piggy' was no exception. What would I do better next time? I lost patience with the gap behind the rear cockpit canopy, next time I will use filler here (as another Phantom modeller has shown here recently). i also didn't really pay full attention to the application of the decals and a couple of them have silvered. So that is the last of my three Phantoms, I really enjoyed building this one. Think I need to take a break from Phantoms for a while now! Comments and critiques very welcome Michael

The second of my three completed 1/48th F-4 Phantom IIs is this ancient ESCI F-4J, this was the Item 4067 boxing 'Bicentennial Phantom' which was released in 1982. I have made several of these kits and I wanted to try out more weathering. The original kit does not include weapons or alternative decals so I had to source these elsewhere. This was supposed to be a quick build but it still took a while! The markings are mainly from Superscale 48-857 'F-4J Phantom, VF74 USS America, 1972' with stencils and walkways taken from an old Hasegawa kit in the stash. The Superscale decals went on well for an old sheet but I had to apply a lot of Decalfix to stop the large red flashes from breaking (one did break). The old Hasegawa decals were very hard work, they took a lot of soaking to release from the sheet. The paint scheme is a standard USN light gull grey over white with 'natural metal' leading edges of wings, stabilators and fin. All colours were Humbrol enamels and Metal Cote for the exhaust areas. Weathering was a home made wash of black paint mixed with white spirit, this was applied to the panel lines with a fine brush and capillary action did the rest for me The weapons load consists of 4 x AIM-7E Sparrows and 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinders, these were sourced from the spares box (they might be Revell/Monogram). The ejection seats are from a Hasegawa Phantom FG.1 and these help to bulk out the cockpit. One of this kits problem areas is the poor fit of the cockpit canopies and I have not done a good job here, it would have been better to have had them open but as the cockpit detail relies on transfers I closed them - poor decision! Oh yes, I also masked and sprayed the cockpit transparencies separate to the aircraft and used the wrong shade of grey! This view of the top shows the panel lines in better detail: The model was finished with a final spray of Humbrol enamel matt varnish from a rattlecan, this is the first time I have used spray varnish and I am fairly pleased with the result, the only down side is that it has negated the metal effect of the Humbrol Metal Cote on the jet exhaust area. So there she is. I am pleased with this build, yes there are errors, but given that the original kit cost me something like £8 on eBay and the decals £3, and I have tried some new techniques - the end result is worth it. Critiques and pointers very welcome Michael

Have today completed three McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantoms in 1/48th scale, I didn't set out to do this originally but it just happened that way. The first is a 1/48th scale Hasegawa kit P17, the Royal Air Force Phantom FG.1 which I discovered contained the extendable nose gear of the original Fleet Air Arm F-4K so I obtained a copy of the ancient Almark Decals sheet A48-1 'McDonnell-Douglas F-4K/RAF Phantom FG.1' and decided to construct VT867 as VL152 operated by FAA 767 Sqn. I love the yellow 'Iron Budgie' on the tail fin and might even have seen one of these in the air at the 1970 Yeovilton Air Day when I was just 12 years old. It turned out like this: The end result does not look too bad however I have had this on the 'shelf of shame' for several years. I admit I am not the most detail conscious of modellers and I managed to put the forward undercarriage bay in the wrong way round. This pushed the entire cockpit module upwards which meant that the seats would not fit and the canopies would not close. I gave up and moved on to other things which was a shame as the air brushing went very well and I was also pleased with the standard of the jet exhausts. The Almark decals were another challenge, I don't know how old they are but compared to photos of the aircraft in service they seem to be very 'heavy' and I gave up when I found I had added an ejection seat triangle to the side of the jet air intake! However, I was still interested in her and I would take her of that shelf, I wanted to get her finished! The breakthrough came when I was working on an old ESCI F-4J, I decided to swap the ejection seats. The Hasegawa seats add much needed presence to the otherwise bare ESCI cockpit while I could cut the ESCI seats down to fit the restricted space in the faulty F-4K. It worked well as seen here: This build also represented another first for me, the addition of an Eduard detail set, FE262 for an FGR Mk.2. I was sort of ok with it until I discovered that some of it didn't fit because of the mistake with the front wheel well (never mind her not being an FGR Mk.2!!) so I gave up on that as well. In fact, at the end, it was worth a try: In the end I forced the issue of the front wheel well by cementing the gear to the front of the well, it isn't accurate but it does still give that unique impression of the Fleet Air Arm Phantom raised up to take off from the Eagle or the Ark Royal. Even after the setbacks I wanted this Phantom to carry a full load of armament. The kit did not include any missiles so I added some AIM-7E Sparrows and AIM-9J Sidewinders from a Hasegawa weapons set, I have no idea how I ended up with AIM-9J Sidewinders on this FAA Phantom, I think they should have been an earlier mark but, hey, they look good! So, mistake after mistake, if you know anything about FAA Phantoms you will probably point and laugh. However, the funny thing is, I am really pleased with the end result and she looks good and she has a guaranteed place in the display cabinet. And one day I am going to make another F-4K Two more Phantoms to come... Michael

Evening folks - I read somewhere the other week about an American company that is selling replacement resin J79 engine nozzles but I can't remember who the company was or where I read it! Apparently they are a direct replacement for the Tamiya 1:32 F4J (the kits being a poor fit). Does anyone know who the company is? Thanks Chris

I'm running a little behind on this one; too many irons in the fire. I know many modellers dislike grey schemes, and I completely understand that stance, but my favorite Phantom scheme is the final RAF grey one. When I was young, I came across a National Geographic article about the Falkland Islands, and it included pics of 1435 Flt Phantoms, and I was hooked. My plan is to build a Fujimi FGR2 in the grey scheme of 92 Sqn with a blue tail using a Modeldecal set. Then it can fly around the living room, I mean sit respectfully on a shelf, next to the blue-tailed 92 Sqn Lightning I built in the Lightning STGB. Full circle! Hockeyboy and 3rd Placer have been building the same kit, and I am going to copy them as best I can. No really, I've been taking copious notes. Note #1 - Invent amusing names for the pilots. Let's see... Flt Lt's B.L. "Blight" Youtale and R.E. Heat. Note #2 - Post a pic of the box and decals. Oh, already did that one. This is going well.

Hello everyone! As you can see it's my first post on this Forum so I'd like to say hello to everyone who visit my topic. For this model I used Bicentennial Eduard kit. I won't write about this kit, because I think everyone knows it. I'd like to ask you what do you think about my Phantom? And please be honest! Thanks for watching!

I have a sneaking suspicion there's going to be a few of these, but here's the start of mine (eek) it's also my first WIP that I intend to finish. I'll forgo the usual sprue shots and instead point you all to this thread. The intention is to do it in the flight test scheme even though I swore off orange paint after the Belgian F-16. First up the seats both before and after: Once the paints dried fully I need to touch up a few areas then give it some weathering. Thanks for looking....... until next time